The
Gilded Serpent presents
Dalia Carella
in San Francisco
by Bàraka
November 1998 Dalia's Background
Amorfia Productions once again treated San Francisco to a superbly planned
event the weekend of November 21-22, 1998 with the presentation of
the
inimitable Dalia
Carella
in two inspired workshops and a show which exceeded even this reviewer's
jaded expectations. The core of Ms.Carella's work is her research
and travel along the Romany trail for over 14 years, focusing primarily
on Spain, India and Turkey. While she
originally was inspired to create her Dunyavi style in 1985, she continues
to see it change and grow as she studies with master teachers and travels
with the people from whom it has sprung. In the past few years,
she has begun to develop a second style of Rom dance which she calls
"El Mundo", which is evolving from her additional training
in a variety of Spanish and Latin dances.
Her dance training and technique are broad, and her teaching ability
is such that she can reach, inspire and challenge a group encompassing
levels from beginner to 'name' performers without slighting either end
of the spectrum. More importantly, she ties movement to feeling,
to energy, to projection. She honors the cultures where the dance
had its genesis and the teachers who passed it down. In short,
she is an inspired (and inspiring), informed (and informative) teacher
who has more to offer than it's possible to absorb in a weekend.
The Workshop
Our weekend began
with a Saturday afternoon workshop in which Ms. Carella introduced elements
of her fusion style, Dunyavi Gypsy ("Rom") dance,
which takes its inspiration from movements of the Rom dances from India,
Spain and the Middle East. The first two hours of the workshop,
she taught the beginning of a spicy and dramatic dance to "Mastika"
from the CD "Best of the Sultans" featuring Omar
Farouk Tekbilek. Utilizing
hand movements from Turkey and Spain, attitudes and characterization
from Turkey, and turns and kick-walks from Flamenco, she created a playful
and passionate interpretation of the piece that opened new vistas of
possibilities for 9/8 rhythms - smooth, dramatic and totally devoid
of the hopping and bouncing steps which many associate with this rhythm.
The second half of Saturday's workshop was devoted to an Oriental styling
of Hossam Ramzy's "Serena"
from his CD "Gamaal Rawhany". In this piece, elegance
and playfulness merged seamlessly with Ms. Carella's sense of drama
and staging. The opening segment included classic steps accented
by innovative floor patterns, quick pivots and unusual stances.
A short taqsim section focused on emotional intensity, drama and presence
- qualities which she has to spare.
Sunday afternoon's workshop devoted the full four hours to one dance
set to "Rona" from "Alabina". Ms. Carella
took great care to explain how this piece matched movement to musical
variations - Spanish and Oriental movements interpreting the different
influences. She also credits much of the shape and staging of
the piece to her coach, Marianno
Parra. While the essence
of the dance was Dalia's, she made clear that Mr. Parra's input helped
in shaping the finished piece, bringing out the Spanish influences and
suggesting changes in staging to better highlight the steps. This
piece presented a real challenge to many participants, incorporating
stronger basic dance skills and concepts than many were familiar with.
Footwork, turns and blocking were expansive and dramatic, slow movements
and presentation required total concentration, and movement suspensions
demanded a high level of physical control. While the class time
did not allow us to complete the dance, we were treated to a full -
and stunning - rendition by Ms. Carella at the conclusion of our time.
The Show
Sunday evening found
many workshop participants and guests at the well-known Marrakech
Restaurant near Union Square.
Recently remodeled, the ambiance in this beautiful space is lovely,
with low seating on divans and cushions, rugs and tapestries throughout,
and beautiful murals which transport the diner to the exotic east of
long ago. The musicians for what proved to be a delightful show
featured vocalist and master violinist Georges Lammam and a cadre
of accomplished fellow players. The evening's percussion section
comprised Tony Lammam on tabla, Nicole LeCorgne on muzhar
(frame drums) and Erena Gordon on riqq; Anis S'heri
on bass and acoustic guitars and Mourad Bshara on keyboard rounded
out the group. I found this format highly refreshing as a change
from the usual seminar show, since it allowed the evening's featured
performers to be fully appreciated. In this instance, the floor was
given over to open dancing between star performances, and with a stellar
ensemble providing the music, there wasn't a spare inch on the dance
floor.
Rashid, a San Francisco local who is, in my book, one of the
top male performers of this form, opened the show with a classic tray
dance which showcased his incredibly precise technique - and a to-die-for
assiut tunic as well. This man has honed isolation to its finest
level, and his slow split is an absolute show-stopper; I won't even
attempt to describe his masterful zil work, which is outstanding yet
perfectly blended with the music. Rashid's background included
many years of study and work with Jamila
Salimpour, and his expertise derives in no small part from this
base, while he has extended the traditional style with innovations that
are particularly his and frequently marked by a subtle humor.
Rashid was followed
by the evening's star performer, Dalia, in an Oriental solo, wearing
a royal purple skirt and shaded veil with an asymmetrically fringed
bedlah. In performance, this woman is drama personified; she entered
swathed entirely in her veil, not allowing us a glimpse of her face
until well into the set. At one moment sublimely removed, at the
next fiery and passionate, then coy and flirtatious, then commanding
- the audience was spellbound, never knowing what would come next.
She is simply a vision when performing with yards of silk, each gesture
and shape meaningful and eloquent. Even in an essentially improvisational
setting, her comfort with the audience, the musicians and the setting
was poised and utterly professional.
After a brief intermission, the musicians returned and again the floor
was filled with dancers and audience members. By this time, the
audience had relaxed after a delicious meal, and were ready to let down
their collective hair. People smiling, laughing, sharing a movement;
it was like attending an extended family celebration. A brief
break, and Rashid returned with a most unusual presentation of "Mashaal".
Wearing a simple black t-shirt and snug black jeans, accented with a
narrow silver hip belt and cuff bracelets, he proved that costuming
should quite rightly take a back seat to ability and interpretation.
He does more standing still than most performers do with an entire stage,
and this self-containment is the hallmark of his style. His ability
to perform isolations of perhaps an inch and still have them completely
visible to an audience is a measure of his superb muscular control.
This provided a delightful contrast to Ms. Carella's finale in a performance
of what she has dubbed the "El Mundo" style, a fusion of Middle
Eastern movements with Spanish and Latin influences. "El
Mundo" is Spanish for "the world", and in this performance
featured exciting Mantónes De Manila (the fringed Spanish shawl)
and skirt work, which she does better than anyone in this business,
all carried off with a high sense of drama. Costumed stunningly by Alia
Michele Tilford (the Alia of Dalia & Alia's costume design business)
in a vibrant red with black lace, fringed and beruffled, she epitomized
the Rom sensibility we have seen in such films as Latcho D'rom
and Gajo Dillo while making full use of the theatricality a
stage performance demands. The range of emotions she projected,
the abandonment she is able to execute with perfect technique, her command
of the stage were all evidence of her mastery of the dance. This
is no flirty, "pretty" dance; this is naked fire, primal emotion,
supported by a well-honed technique and research. This is exceptional
dance and
exceptional art.
Overall, this was a weekend of excitement and beauty, of immense
value to the participants. I particularly enjoyed Ms. Carella's
teaching style. Her patience in repeating combinations until everyone
could grasp the essentials meant that none were left completely in the
dark. As she wove threads from different cultures together, she
carefully explained the genesis of her work, how it related to the music,
and why she used it; this in-depth material left participants with a
sense not only of the "how" of the piece, but the all-important
"why". Her insistence on appropriate posture and carriage
was a delight to see, even though it was frequently challenging for
many of the less-experienced. However, the most satisfying aspect,
the strongest impression I was left with, was her absolute dedication
to raising the standards of this dance. She understands that many
students are essentially hobbyists, but she made a very clear and strong
statement of responsibility; that every performer, regardless of level
of competence, is representing this form to the public, and thus should
treat the performance and the form with respect. She has no patience
with laziness, shoddy technique or inattention, and demands total presence
in the dance, and for that she certainly gained a great measure of respect
from me. "Good enough" never happens, and regardless
of our level of ability, good dance means continuing work. Thank
you, Amorfia Productions for providing a wonderful weekend, and especially
thank you, Dalia, for a superb dance experience!
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